The present invention relates to a digital map display zooming method, a digital map display zooming device and a storage medium for storing a digital map display zooming program, which are for enlarging and reducing a displayed portion of a digital map as map information in digital form within a display screen.
Digital maps as map information in digital form are maps put into electronic form so as to be handled on the display screen of a computer such as a portable computer etc. This kind of digital map is referred to as an electronic map or map software, where maps can be displayed on a display screen.
With this kind of digital map, a map is displayed on, for example, the display screen of a portable computer so that an operation such that a target is set on the map can be carried out, with these digital maps being applied to car navigation systems etc. in recent years.
Incidentally, related art operation for enlarging or reducing the displayed portion of the digital map within the display screen is carried out by a user operating prescribed buttons.
However, with this kind of operation for enlarging or reducing the displayed portion of the digital map, the displayed portion of the digital map can only be enlarged or reduced in an intermittent manner on certain scales of, for example, about four steps. The displayed portion of the digital map therefore cannot be displayed at a scale on which the user wishes to set.
It is therefore an object of the present invention to solve the aforementioned problem to provide a digital map display zooming method, a digital map display zooming device and a storage medium for storing a digital map display zooming program which are capable of easily displaying the displayed portion at an arbitrary rate of enlargement by a user continuously enlarging or reducing the displayed portion of the digital map while watching the display screen.
The above object can be achieved in the present invention by a digital map display zooming method for enlarging and reducing a displayed portion of a digital map as map information in digital form within a display screen, the method comprising the steps of displaying the displayed portion of the digital map at the display screen, displaying a scroll part within the display screen for shifting the displayed portion, making the scroll part function as a scale setting part for carrying out enlarging and reducing operations of the displayed portion of the digital map within the display screen, and carrying out enlarging and reducing operations of the displayed portion of the digital map within the display screen by shifting a shifting operation part of the scale setting part.
In the present invention, the scroll part displayed within the display screen for shifting the displayed portion functions as a scale setting part for carrying out enlarging and reducing operations of the displayed portion of the digital map. The user can then carry out enlarging and reducing operations of the displayed portion of the digital map within the display screen by shifting the shifting operation part of the scale setting part.
In this way, the user can freely carry out enlarging and reducing operations of the size of the displayed portion displayed at the display screen with ease by only shifting the shifting operation part of the scale setting part within the display screen while watching the shifting operation part of the scale setting part of the display screen.
In the present invention, if the user preferably carries out an operation while looking at the side end of the display screen so that the displayed portion of the digital map is continuously reduced when shifting the shifting operation part of the scale setting part in an upward direction of the display screen, and on the contrary, the displayed portion of the digital map is continuously enlarged when shifting the shifting operation part of the scale setting part in a downward direction of the display screen, there will be no mistakes in the zooming operations because the displayed portion of the digital map will be enlarged and reduced in conformity with the sense of up and down of the user.
The above object can also be achieved in the present invention by a digital map display zooming device for enlarging and reducing a displayed portion of a digital map as map information in digital form within a display screen, the device comprising a display section having a display screen for displaying the displayed portion of the digital map, a scale setting part provided to be displayed at the display screen of the display section, the scale setting part comprising a scroll part having a shifting operation part and being displayed at the display screen with a function thereof being changed for shifting the displayed portion, and carrying out enlarging and reducing operations of the displayed portion of the digital map within the display screen by operating the shifting operation part, a pointing device for operating the shifting operation part of the scale setting part, and an arithmetic processor for carrying out processing for enlarging and reducing operations of the displayed portion of the digital map within the display screen by shifting the shifting operation part of the scale setting part with the pointing device being operated.
In the present invention the displayed portion of the digital map is displayed at the display screen of the display section. The scale setting part is displayed at the display screen. This scale setting part is a scroll part displayed at the display screen with a function thereof being changed for shifting the displayed portion. The operation of zooming the displayed portion can then be carried out by operating the shifting operation part.
The pointing device is for the user to operate the shifting operation part of the scale setting part.
The arithmetic processor carries out processing for carrying out enlarging and reducing operations of the displayed portion of the digital map within the display screen by shifting the shifting operation part of the scale setting part by operations of the pointing means.
As a result, the user can freely carry out enlarging or reducing operation with ease for the size of the shifting displayed portion displayed at the display screen only by shifting the shifting operation part of the scale setting part within the display screen while watching the shifting operation part.
The aforementioned object can also be achieved in the present invention by a storage medium for storing a digital map display zooming program for enlarging and reducing a displayed portion of a digital map as map information in digital form within a display screen, wherein the program comprises the steps of displaying the displayed portion of the digital map is displayed at the display screen, displaying a scroll part within the display screen for shifting the displayed portion, making the scroll part function as a scale setting part for carrying out enlarging and reducing operations of the displayed portion of the digital map within the display screen by operating the pointing means, and carrying out enlarging and reducing operations of the displayed portion of the digital map within the display screen by shifting a shifting operation part of the scale setting part.
In the present invention, the user can freely carry out enlarging or reducing operation with ease for the size of the displayed portion displayed at the display screen only by shifting the shifting operation part of the scale setting part within the display screen while watching the shifting operation part.